Top records, June was the hottest month

The agency released temperature data for June 2019 and the statistics confirmed what many in Europe had felt: this month is the hottest in Europe since data registration has started at 2 degrees above average. Last week, the hottest week of the hottest month, France, Switzerland, northern Spain, Italy, Austria, and the Czech Republic, saw temperatures ranging from 6 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit [6 to 10 ° C] above the average.

Even though the heat wave of 2019 has not lasted as long as the one in 2018, it has been especially intense”, explains Copernicus. The former European record for the month of June, which has now collapsed, dates back to 1999. The average global temperature was also the highest ever recorded for the month of June, even though it was only 0.1 degrees Celsius higher than the previous 2002 summer record.

Compared to the June temperatures since 1880, last month was more than 3 degrees hotter in Europe and more than 1 degrees hotter on a global scale. While it is difficult to attribute this wave of climate change directly to heat, these extreme weather events are expected to become more and more frequent as the planet continues to heat up because of the rising concentration of greenhouse gases é said Copernicus in a press release.